Senate Bill sb1990c1

    Florida Senate - 2002                           CS for SB 1990

    By the Committee on Transportation; and Senator Sebesta





    306-2029-02

  1                      A bill to be entitled

  2         An act relating to wrecker services; amending

  3         s. 321.6051, F.S.; providing that a law

  4         enforcement officer may dispatch an authorized

  5         wrecker, or a wrecker out of rotation under

  6         certain circumstances; amending s. 713.78,

  7         F.S., providing limited liability for certain

  8         persons and entities when removing a vehicle

  9         that poses an imminent public hazard; providing

10         an effective date.

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12  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:

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14         Section 1.  Subsection (4) of section 321.051, Florida

15  Statutes, is amended and subsection (5) is added to that

16  section to read:

17         321.051  Florida Highway Patrol wrecker operator

18  system; penalties for operation outside of system.--

19         (4)  This section does not prohibit, or in any way

20  prevent, the owner or operator of a vehicle involved in a

21  crash or otherwise disabled from contacting any wrecker

22  operator for the provision of towing services, whether the

23  wrecker operator is an authorized wrecker operator or not.

24  However, if a law enforcement officer determines that the

25  disabled vehicle or vehicle cargo is a public safety hazard,

26  the officer may, in the interest of public safety, dispatch an

27  authorized wrecker operator if the officer believes that such

28  authorized wrecker operator would arrive at the scene before

29  the wrecker operator requested by the owner or operator of the

30  disabled vehicle or vehicle cargo.

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CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.






    Florida Senate - 2002                           CS for SB 1990
    306-2029-02




  1         (5)  A law enforcement officer may dispatch an

  2  authorized wrecker operator out of rotation to the scene of a

  3  wrecked or disabled vehicle if the authorized wrecker operator

  4  next on rotation is not equipped to provide the required

  5  wrecker service and the out-of-rotation authorized wrecker is

  6  available with the required equipment. However, this

  7  subsection does not prohibit or prevent the owner or operator

  8  of a vehicle involved in a crash or otherwise disabled from

  9  contacting any wrecker operator who is properly equipped to

10  provide the required wrecker service, whether the wrecker

11  operator is an authorized wrecker operator or not, unless the

12  law enforcement officer determines that the wrecked or

13  disabled vehicle is a public safety hazard and the officer

14  believes that the authorized wrecker operator would arrive at

15  the scene before the wrecker operator requested by the owner

16  operator.

17         Section 2.  Present paragraph (b) of subsection (7) of

18  section 713.78, Florida Statutes, is redesignated as paragraph

19  (c) and a new paragraph (b) is added to that subsection to

20  read:

21         713.78  Liens for recovering, towing, or storing

22  vehicles and vessels.--

23         (7)

24         (b)  Employees or authorized agents of the Department

25  of Transportation or any authorized or unauthorized wrecker

26  operator, as defined in s. 321.051, may remove a vehicle or

27  vehicle cargo from a public road without consent of the owner

28  or operator of the vehicle or vehicle cargo upon request of a

29  law enforcement officer as defined in s. 112.531 or a

30  firefighter as defined in s. 112.81. The employee or

31  authorized agent of the Department of Transportation, the

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CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.






    Florida Senate - 2002                           CS for SB 1990
    306-2029-02




  1  wrecker operator, the wrecker operator's firm, including its

  2  officers and employees, the law enforcement officer, and the

  3  firefighters and emergency medical services providers are not

  4  liable for any property damages or claims of damage for such

  5  removal if the vehicle or vehicle cargo is removed because it

  6  presents an imminent public-safety hazard.

  7         Section 3.  This act shall take effect upon becoming a

  8  law.

  9

10          STATEMENT OF SUBSTANTIAL CHANGES CONTAINED IN
                       COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR
11                         Senate Bill 1990

12

13  The CS authorizes a law enforcement officer to dispatch an
    authorized wrecker operator to the scene of a wrecked or
14  disabled vehicle (even though the owner of the wrecked or
    disabled vehicle has requested another wrecker) when the law
15  enforcement officer determines there is a public safety
    hazard, and when the law enforcement officer believes the
16  authorized wrecker operator would arrive at the scene before
    the wrecker requested by the owner of the wrecked or disabled
17  vehicle.

18  Section 321.051(5), F.S., is created to provide a law
    enforcement officer may dispatch an authorized wrecker
19  operator out of rotation to the scene of a wrecked or disabled
    vehicle if the authorized wrecker next on rotation is not
20  equipped to provide the required wrecker service.  However,
    the owner or operator of the disabled vehicle may contact any
21  wrecker who is properly equipped to provide the required
    wrecker services, unless the law enforcement officer
22  determines the disabled vehicle is a public safety hazard and
    the authorized wrecker would arrive at the scene before the
23  wrecker requested by the owner of the disabled vehicle.

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CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.